NORTHBROOK, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Hilco Trading, LLC (“Hilco”) announced that Hilco Warren, LLC purchased the steel making assets at the former RG Steel Mill facility in Warren, Ohio from BDM Warren Steel Holdings, LLC (“BDM”). BDM is an entity formed to acquire all assets of the former RG mill in Warren.
Gary Epstein, Chief Marketing Officer for Hilco, indicated that it is planning an aggressive push to seek buyers for the facility as a whole or in part. “Hilco will run a sale process that will include continuing to market the steel making complex, vetting and evaluating all offers in a private treaty sale,” he said. The Warren Steel Mill which is over 110 years old was sold most recently in September 2012 to BDM in US Bankruptcy Court in Delaware after all steel making work was halted in May of 2012 by its previous owner RG Steel.
“Our goal is to do everything possible to find a purchaser for the facility that can operate the hot mill facility as a going concern,” said Epstein. He further indicated that there may be some precision demolition work completed at the cold mill site, however, Hilco remains focused on finding a buyer, making every reasonable effort to get the hot steel making operation up and running again.
Court documents filed following the bankruptcy last year indicate that BDM was committed to finding a steel making operator to run the facility and included a specific moratorium on the removal or sale of assets at the 1200 acre site for nine months after BDM’s acquisition. Hilco intends to fulfill this obligation and will aggressively seek a going concern buyer for the hot mill. BDM committed substantial capital to maintain the facility throughout the winter of 2012/13 while continuing to market the complex, making every effort toward getting it operational on some scale.
About Hilco Trading, LLC: Headquartered in Northbrook, Illinois (USA), Hilco is a privately-held, diversified financial services firm whose principal competency is understanding and maximizing the value of business assets, including retail, consumer and industrial inventory; machinery and equipment; real estate; accounts receivable; intellectual property; and, going-concern enterprises. Through 500 professionals operating on five continents, Hilco helps companies and their professional advisors assess asset value, maximize value for said assets through asset monetization solutions, and enhance value through advisory and consulting solutions. For more information please visit our web site: www.hilcotrading.com .
About BDM Warren Steel Holding LLC: BDM is a newly formed company, as part of the purchase of the Warren Steel Mill complex in 2012, with three (3) very experienced groups as its principals. The first participant is Charles J. Betters who operates several companies including Beaver Valley Slag and Bet-Tech Construction. Mr. Betters has significant experience in the environmental remediation and subsequent redevelopment of brownfields. The second participant is Stephen M. Muck of Grouse Ridge Capital, LLC, a diversified investment firm. Mr. Muck has experience in heavy civil construction and demolition along with real estate and brownfield development as well as investment banking experience. The final participant is the DiGeronimo Family, owners of Independence Excavating. Independence Excavating is a general contractor specializing in highway and large earth moving projects.
History of the Warren, Ohio Steel Mill: In 2012, RG Steel's closing of the facility in Warren, Ohio brought an end to 110 years of steelmaking at the site, which began in 1902 as Republic Steel Corp. The company was then purchased by Jones & Laughlin Steel Corp., which subsequently became LTV Steel. After LTV declared bankruptcy during the late 1980s, the company was reorganized as WCI Steel and purchased by the Renco Group. However, WCI filed for bankruptcy in 2002, and the mill was sold in 2008 to Severstal SA, one of the largest steel and mining companies in Russia. In 2010, Severstal sold the mill to RG Steel. RG Steel filed for Bankruptcy in May of 2012, and BDM purchased the facility in August of that same year.
